Wheee....CRUNCH: Google chucks Moto's set-top box biz out window

Google has sold Motorola Mobility's set-top box business to Arris Group for $2.35bn in cash and stock, in a deal that will go through next year.

The internet giant is offloading Motorola Home and getting a 15.7 per cent or so stake in broadband technology firm Arris plus $2.05bn in cash at the same time, Moto announced.

Arris is getting some patents from Motorola Home for its own portfolio and a licence to a "wide variety" of Motorola Mobility patents.

Google was never really that interested in Moto's TV biz, having acquired the firm for $12.5bn mostly for its large patent portfolio. Offloading the Home section also gets rid of a lot of manufacturing facilities, which is good for Google investors that are wary of the firm getting into making its own hardware.

Arris Group's shares jumped 16.9 per cent in after-hours trading on the news, while Google's stock has eased a tiny amount, just 0.36 per cent. ®